Union League renovations put it in the modern age, a bit

The Union League of Philadelphia, a prestigious private club in one of the city’s most recognizable buildings, will begin the final two installments of a multiyear, multiphased master plan of renovations set in motion seven years ago.

The club’s main kitchen and grand Lincoln Ballroom are the last two parts of the plan to renovate the historic building at 140 S. Broad St. The projects will round out a $24 million series of improvements aimed to not only make parts of the building state of the art but also reinvent certain aspects of the club that had become antiquated.

The ballroom and kitchen were added to the club in 1910. The kitchen will end up being the most complicated of the two rehabs since it is vital to so many of the club’s operations. The Lincoln Ballroom, where wedding receptions and large events are commonly held, won’t be as difficult to renovate though several issues will be addressed in the work.

“[The ballroom] was growing tired to be competitive,” said Eric Rahe, principal at BLT Architects. “The lighting, acoustics and aesthetics needed to be improved.”

The challenge is how to make those and other upgrades without dramatically changing the room, its traditional tone set by the milled woodwork, massive crystal chandelier, and grand scale. BLT has experience with trying to maintain the club’s historic and architectural integrity since the Philadelphia firm has worked on many of the recent renovations including the design and addition of a cigar lounge, business center, and renovation of front rooms and a cafe.

What helped with the ballroom project was finding an historic drawing of a decorative ceiling designed by Horace Trumbauer for the room when it was originally planned. The drawing shows a ceiling with a series of hexagons and that gave a theme for the renovation and will be incorporated in fabric wall panels that will cover portions of the wood. The new ceiling design and fabric panels will help with acoustics and lighten the room. New drapes will also be hung and lighting incorporated to brighten the room. In addition, an audio-visual component will be incorporated into the ballroom.

The kitchen has its own demands.

The space, 9,900 square feet, was restored during the 1950s and hasn’t been touched since but for some upgrades here and there that made it functional and able to handle the hundreds of meals it prepares for weddings, events, meetings and overnight guests. The kitchen will be shut down while the overhaul is under way. Work will not only include modernization and the installation of custom-designed appliances, it will also add a display kitchen where Union League Chef Martin Hamann will conduct cooking classes, a two-story wine vault and tasting room where private dinners can be held. A storage space will be reconfigured by carefully digging around the structure’s foundation. The kitchen work will begin in January and is scheduled to be completed within six months.

Though these two projects will be the capstones, some of the other work done as part of the master plan stand out.

“The dining room was one of the most important things done next to hiring Martin Hamann,” said Patricia Tobin, assistant general manager. “Two things that happened at the same time and that in itself sent the message that we take food and beverage very seriously, and dining was going to be something that we were going to improve here.”

The Union League had members who would often drop by for a cocktail and then head out to a restaurant, taking with them money that could have been spent at the club. Beyond that, the subtext was that the Union League was not accommodating its members on several levels. The new restaurants formed were the Founder’s Room and 1862, overseen by Hamann.

“We needed to make it better in order to compete with nearby restaurants and not be a club that served just club food,” Tobin said. “We attacked that head-on and hit a home run.”

The addition of a cigar lounge has been welcomed by members. It’s helped increase dining in the cafe since smoke no longer bleeds into the room, Tobin said.